Diamond abrasive resinoid dicing blades are commonly used for cutting or dicing materials used in microelectronics and other applications. The materials are generally being diced or cut into smaller squares or rectangles or, sometimes, slotted for use in various products.
The diamond abrasive resinoid blades manufactured today are thin annular rings consisting of phenolic resin with homogeneous mixture of diamond abrasive molded in. These thin annular rings need mechanical support when they are used to cut or dice materials. These flanges or supports are currently machined from metal. A small portion of the outer diameter of the blade extends beyond the flanges or supports and is called the blade exposure or cutting edge.
Such diamond abrasive resinoid dicing blades are known as "Wear Type Blades". This terminology has been assigned to them because as the diamond abrasive becomes dull it will break away from the resin bond. In this manner, new sharp diamond abrasive will be exposed as the blade wears down in diameter. This continuous sharpening phenomena gives the diamond abrasive resinoid blade a superior cutting ability. However, one problem with current blade is that the blade and flange assembly must be removed from the machine periodically and the blade replaced on smaller diameter metal flanges, in order to maintain an usable cutting edge or blade exposure.
In order to eliminate having to remove and replace these flanges or supports, an idea was conceived to mechanically support these diamond abrasive resinoid dicing blades with a plastic or other soft material hub or ring. These hubs or rings would allow a portion of the outer diameter of the blade to extend beyond their smaller diameters. This would provide a cutting edge or blade exposure. When the blades wear down or more blade exposure is needed the hub or ring material may be abraded away or worn back. This will expose more of the blade from the edge of the hub or ring. The method of doing this is to traverse the assembly thru a dressing plate which has bonded abrasives that are less hard than the abrasives in the blade. In this manner, the blade will cut easily into the dressing plate but the material of the hub or ring will be worn or abraded away. By adjusting the depth of cut of the blade a predetermined blade exposure or cutting edge can be made. Some objects and advantages of this invention are set forth in the Summary herein below.